Leave It To Lanie
by twinmomma78
Summary: Kate's got choices to make, but she doesn't know where to begin. Leave it to Lanie to show her what the possibilities really could be.


**Totally just had to get a ladies' perspective on the current love triangle. Not sure exactly where this fits in, but I guess it's not too long after Food To Die For. Kate's confused about Castle's strange behavior and visits Lanie to talk it over…**

Lanie was cleaning up her work station for the night when Kate walked in. The look on her friend's face just made it clear that something was definitely up.

"What's going on, girl?" Lanie said. "You look like you need some girl talk."

Kate set her file down on the counter and sighed, lowering her head and shaking it in an exasperated motion.

"I just don't understand men," Kate said. "You think you know someone and then they go and turn things around on you."

Lanie grinned to herself and pasted a thoughtful expression on her face to disguise her glee…Kate was long overdue for some man trouble, and she was looking forward to hearing all about it.

"Spill it," she said simply. "Is this about Detective Demming? Heard you got yourself a date with him soon."

Kate looked up from under her hair and shrugged. "Yeah, we're having dinner tomorrow night. Again."

"OK then, what seems to be the problem?" Lanie already knew, but wanted to see what Kate would say.

"I don't know what's going on with Castle," she confessed. "He's barely speaking to me."

_**Bingo**_, Lanie thought to herself. _Now we're getting somewhere._ "What do you mean?" she asked innocently, anxious to hear the answer.

"Well, you know how he usually is…always following me around like a puppy dog…asking questions non-stop…going out of his way to act like a 12-year-old child," Kate said. "Lately that's stopped. He's not the same Castle anymore."

"Um, I'm confused," Lanie said, putting on her best puzzled look. "Those were all things that aggravated you and now they've stopped. What exactly is your problem with that?"

Kate hopped up to sit on the counter, putting her head in her hands. "That's just it…I should be happy that he's not acting like that. But I can't help but wonder what his problem is."

Lanie had to work hard to contain the grin she felt spreading across her face. It was about damn time her friend had some complexity in her life…outside of work, of course. She gathered up her instruments and moved them to the storage bin slowly, biding her time to draw the conversation out a little longer.

"Castle is a big boy, Kate," she began, choosing her words carefully. "He is probably just trying to be respectful now that you're dating Tom. You _are_ dating Tom, right?"

Kate looked up again, curious about where Lanie was leading their chat. "Yeah, I guess you could say we're dating. But that has nothing to do with Castle."

"Honey, that's got everything to do with the way he's acting…to me it seems like he's trying to give you space," Lanie said, not wanting to reveal what she believed the actual truth. _The poor man is heartbroken, and all you can think about is the fact that he's acting mature for a change…and how much that bothers you._

"But I don't need him to give me space," Kate said. "He's on board to shadow me, to follow me at work for research. You'd think that he would understand how that works after almost two years. We're friends. Why should that change just because I have dinner with Tom once in a while?"

Lanie slammed her clipboard down on the counter to stop Kate's rampage. "Girl, have you really not been paying attention all this time? I think you might want to consider making an appointment with your eye doctor, because everyone else can see it but you."

"Wha…" Kate began to question but was immediately cut off when Lanie kept going.

"The man has saved your life on more than one occasion," Lanie said. "You've saved his even more than that. He's probably had enough research to write 20 more books already, but he continues to study the team…and you. You may not always catch the way he looks at you, with admiration all shining in his eyes, but the rest of us see it. Open your eyes, girl. The man is half in love with you, if not all the way there, and he's trying to let you be happy, because he thinks Tom makes you happy. Castle probably doesn't even realize that he could be the one to make you happy, if you'd let him."

Kate sat silently, digesting what her best friend had just laid on the table and realizing that she already had known most of it. Sometimes it really is harder to see what's in front of your face. Lanie, understanding that she'd been a bit overwhelming in her not-quite-calm approach, softened her expression and put a hand on Kate's shoulder. "Honey, I know it's not easy to look at things from this perspective, but when you're investigating a case, don't you have to look at every angle?" Lanie said.

"This isn't exactly a murder," Kate admitted. "But I guess you're right. And Tom does make me happy. He's sweet and kind, and thoughtful. He's safe."

Eyebrow raised, Lanie ventured a conclusion. "And Castle's not safe, right?" Sighing, she paced over to her laptop to shut it down for the night. "Safe isn't necessarily right, but Tom's a great guy. I can see why you like him, from the few times I've talked to him." Knowing Kate wasn't ready to respond yet, Lanie continued, "But you thrive on adventure, Kate. Get the evidence, put the pieces together. Solve the murder, catch the bad guy. Maybe you need more than safe. Maybe you need a challenge."

"Castle's definitely that," Kate said quietly. "You really think he feels that way about me?"

Lanie scoffed in response and sent Kate a stare that clearly questioned her sanity. "Kate. Come on. I spend my work day determining cause of death and narrowing down windows of mortality. I don't need a fraction of my deductive reasoning skills to see that Writer Boy cares for you way more than even he realizes."

"_The heart wants what the heart wants_," Kate murmured. "This is so complicated…this is insane."

"But it sure makes for a fantastic plot," Lanie said. "Look, I'm not telling you not to date Tom. I'm not telling you to even let on what we've discussed here to anyone. As far as I'm concerned, what is said in the morgue, stays in the morgue…but you need to be happy, Kate. You deserve to be happy."

"What guarantee do I have that Castle won't just break my heart, make me another name on his list?" Kate asked.

"No guarantees, Kate…you know that better than most people do," Lanie responded. "But that's why a book has so many chapters. Don't you want to at least read this one, see what it has to say?"

"Please tell me you did not just reference a certain novelist we know," Kate said, rolling her eyes and hopping down from her perch on the counter. For the first time in the conversation, Kate smiled. Lanie considered that a plus one on her side.

"Guess Castle's been hanging around long enough to have an effect on me, too," Lanie said. "Kate, whatever you decide, just understand that I'm here whenever you want to talk."

"Thanks, Lanie," Katie said, picking her file back up and waiting for her friend to gather her belongings to leave. They walked toward the door together.

"So…what's the word about you wanting to make _little Castle babies_?" Lanie said, turning out the light on the way out just as Kate turned a shocked stare in her direction. "What? Like someone wasn't going to hear about that little discussion…"


End file.
